War management: the trident of Kiev and the contrasts of Moscow

Preparation, search for targets, execution. the trident used by Kiev to manage this phase of the conflict and stand up to the enemy. In Moscow, on the other hand, they are arguing over the latest downpours and Vladimir Putin orders reparations to the relatives of the fallen.

The scenery

It had already happened during the offensive to liberate Kherson: the Ukrainians had targeted a large number of Russian depots and installations. A meticulous and profound work. The scenario repeats itself. The command revealed that it has affected 13 concentrations of occupiers using artillery, guided munitions, rocket launchers supplied by the United States. Here you are the strikes on MakiivkaSadove, Davydivka, Zaporizhzhia and other sites with consequences heavy for the Army, in terms of men and image. The same thing had happened in the first days of the invasion, when the advance on Kiev had first been slowed down and then halted by accurate fire.

The search for targets turns into a system, saves shots, brings results. Obviously a component alone is not enough, however it affects. Especially when deployments are less mobile, certified on their lines. The massive presence of reservists mobilized from Moscow stabilized the fronts — this was it the intention of General Surovikin —, has created density but has also led to great concentrations. The General Staff tried to keep the troops further awayhe adapted the posture to reduce the risks for having to garrison the conquered areas he exposed the recruits both in the trenches and in the rear.

Some ideas have emerged, others will be revealed tomorrow, others will remain buried. Spies lose, win, sometimes swim into the gray area, the ideal water for hiding. For the same reason they can spread misleading information, create diversions to hide surprises. You indicate a destination and pursue another by exploiting the weaknesses. the Kharkiv lesson, where the resistance – while the focus was on Kherson – thanks to a good knowledge of the thin Russian deployment recorded a major success. Today there is talk of a slow Ukrainian progression on Kreminna.

The drones

the activity of drones is always understood. Zelensky expects new waves of attacks on cities with means provided by Iran, the various versions of the Shahed. In sounding the alarm, the president points out that almost 80 have been shot down in the space of a couple of days thanks to the anti-aircraft composed of twin machine guns on jeeps, German Gepard cannons, portable missiles, the new Nasams and Iris T. There is an adaptation to the threat, measures introduced on the run and based on daily experience.

The military is creative, it employs old Soviet pieces to engage drones that are never too fast. There is satisfaction but also propagandadifficult to verify the victorious bulletins, including the one indicating 500 drones destroyed since the beginning of the crisis. They can’t block everything: blackouts over large areas are the consequences of successful bombings by the invaders, damage to infrastructure claims billions of dollars.

Bakhmut Fortress

Evgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Russian security company Wagner, love the spotlight. In the good and bad luck. The latest video showed him in a basement full of bodies, his men who died in the battle of Bakhmut. The hierarch admitted what everyone knows: they struggle to overcome the opposing defenses because the Ukrainians are well organised and the locality – in his words – like a fortress: every house becomes a bunker, the rubble is an obstacle. AND one of the militiamen complains about the lack of material. This contrasts with the narrative that Wagner would have a fast track to get supplies.

However, the difficulties do not induce Prigozhin to give up. The taking of the city has military and political significance for him, a possible victory would be fuel for his ambitions and a head to offer to the Kremlin. If there are dozens of fallen, it matters little to the leaderalso because many are ex-convicts. Vladimir Putin’s position is more formal. A new presidential decree establishes that the family of each fallen victim must receive the equivalent of 66,000 euros. At the same time, the neo-tsar asked Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu for a report by February 1 on the status of the departments’ equipment. Obvious responses to criticism of the General Staff by parliamentarians and experts humiliated by what happened in Makiivka.